410
California State Standard Set 5
Section 5 — Earth Sciences
Understanding the organization and configuration of our Solar System is
at the heart of this chapter. Students will be exposed to understanding and
describing the relative motions of the planets. Having already had exposure to
the concept of the Earth’s movement in space in relation to the Sun and Moon,
students will study the composition of the Sun and the other components of
the planets. The relationship between gravity and planetary orbits will be
explored.
Section 5 — Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
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Teachers’ Standards Checklist
Skills and Concepts covered in the Standard Set 5 section.
Standard Set
Dates Completed and Comments
Standard Set 5. Earth Sciences (The Solar
System) The solar system consists of planets
and other bodies that orbit the Sun in
predictable paths. As a basis for understanding
this concept:
a.
Students know the Sun, an average star,
is the central and largest body in the solar
system and is composed of primarily
hydrogen and helium.
b.
Students know the solar system includes
the planet Earth, the Moon, the Sun,
eight other planets and their satellites,
and smaller objects, such as asteroids and
comets.
c.
Students know the path of a planet around
the Sun is due to the gravitational attraction
between the Sun and the planet.
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Lesson Plan — Standard Set 5
Title: The Magic of Bodies in Space
Objectives:
Conceptual - Students will:
•
Expand their knowledge of the Sun and the Solar System to include its
composition, and gravitational influences.
Behavioral - Students will be able to:
•
Demonstrate prior knowledge of the Sun and the solar system
•
Share ideas with a group
•
Create and name categories related to concept of space
•
Use a graphic organizer to display information
California Standard(s)
Science — Introduction to Standard Set 5. Earth Sciences
Focus Question: What do you know about the Earth and Sun?
Materials:
Large chart with columns for groups, one marker per group, one sheet of writing paper
per group, copies of the Categories Chart one per student
Procedure:
1.
Present students with a model of the solar system. Ask them to conduct a “write
around”, which is an activity where students begin with one sheet of writing
paper. In groups of four, one student takes the paper and writes one thing he/
she knows about the solar system. Then the student passes the paper to the
next person who has to read what the first person wrote, and writes something
different. The group conducts the write around for five minutes.
2.
The groups will share their ideas by entering some of their responses onto a large
piece of chart paper made by the teacher. Each group will have a column of their
own to enter responses in. It may resemble this:
Group 1
There are 9
planets in the
solar system.
Group 2
Group 3
The Sun is the Earth has one
center of the moon.
solar system.
Section 5 — Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
Group 4
The planets
travel around
the Sun.
Group 5
Other things
move around
in space.
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Lesson Plan — Standard Set 5
3.
After all groups have put most of their responses on the large chart, direct them
to now create categories using some of the ideas on the chart. Distribute the
Categories Chart to each student, and direct students to place each idea into a
category. Once the category is completed, put a name for the category at the top. It should resemble this:
The Sun
The Earth
The Planets
Objects in
space
The Sun is the The Earth
The planets
There are
center of the revolves
orbit around objects in the
solar system. around the
the Sun.
solar system
The Sun gives Sun.
There are nine that roam
the Earth light The Earth has planets
around space.
and heat.
one moon.
Other objects
are called
comets.
People in
space
People travel
to space.
Astronauts
have to be
great science
students.
Although a group activity, each student must be accountable for making his/her own
Categories Chart.
4.
When groups are done, students will circulate around the room and share their
categories and ideas.
5.
Reconvene as a class, and share categories with the teacher.
6.
Teacher will inform students that in this unit they will learn more in-depth
information about the Sun, the Earth, and other celestial bodies.
Assessment:
Students will hand in their Categories Charts for the teacher to evaluate to develop an
understanding as to what the students know about the Earth in Space.
Home/School Connection:
Ask students to present the Categories Chart to their parent/guardian with the names
of the categories blank. Have parents try to guess the names of the categories and fill
them in.
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Lesson Plan — Standard Set 5
Categories Chart
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California Content Standards — Grade 5
Standard Set 5. Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
5.
The solar system consists of planets and other bodies that orbit the Sun in predictable paths.
5.a.
Students know the Sun, an average star, is the central and largest body in the solar system and is composed
primarily of hydrogen and helium.
Notes to Teacher
NoonecanquestiontheimportanceoftheSuntolifeonEarth.Students
begintheirformalstudyabouttheSuninGrade1whentheyrecognize
thattheSunwarmstheland,air,andwateraroundus.Theycontinuetheir
investigationoftheSuninGrade3astheybegintoexplorehowtheSun’spositionin
theskychangesduringthedayandduringtheseasons.
Inthissection,studentslookattheSun’splaceinoursolarsystemaswellas
itscomposition.InStandardSet1studentshavetheopportunitytostudysome
representativeelementsincludinghydrogenandhelium.Nowtheyfindthatthosetwo
gasesareresponsiblefortheSun’senergy.
TouchingonthelongagodebateaboutwhetherEarthisthecenteroftheuniverseor
whethertheSunis,introducesstudentsnotonlytothe“heliocentric”(Sun-centered)
modelbutalsotothebroaderideaofhistoryofscience.Manystudentsatthisstage
intheirsciencestudyareintriguedbyhowwehavearrivedatthisstageof“knowing”
aboutscience.Theyshouldbeencouragedtoresearchareasofinteresttothem.Many
studentsarefascinatedbyspacestudy.Thissectionistheperfect“launchingpad”.
Key Words:
Thesewordsareintroducedtothestudentinthecontextofthis
section.Studentsshouldbeencouragedtoaddthesewordstotheir
“PersonalWordGlossary”,theirjournals,andtothewordwall.
Star – a large body in space that produces its own energy.
StudentsshouldberemindedthatourSunisastar.Thestarsweseeatnightare
also“suns”.Theyseemverysmallonlybecauseofthegreatdistancesbetween
Earthandthem.
Sun – the name we give the star that is at the center of our solar system.
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California Content Standards
5.a.
Students know the Sun, an average star, is the central and largest body in the solar system and is composed
primarily of hydrogen and helium.
Hydrogen – a lightweight gas that reacts easily with other elements.
Studentswillencounterhydrogenastheystudytheperiodictable.Ithasan
atomicnumberof1becauseithasonlyoneprotoninitsnucleus.Hydrogenis
highlyflammable.
Helium – a lightweight gas that does not react easily with other elements.
Helium,atomicnumber2,ispartofagroupcalledthenoblegasesbecauseit(and
they)donotreadilyreactwithotherelements.
Solar – something related to the Sun, ex. solar system.
Studentswillalreadybefamiliarwith“solar”asanadjective,ex.solarpanel,solar
cooker,solarenergy.
Background Information
StudentsareremindedthattheSunisresponsibleforalllifeonEarth,that
istosay,wewouldhavenolifeiftheSun’senergydidnotreachthisplanet.
Indirectlystudentsstudiedthiswhilelearning,inGrade3,aboutdifferent
environmentsinwhichplantsandanimalslive.Afterall,environmentalconditionslike
temperature,seasonalchanges,amountofwater,weather,areallrelatedbacktothe
Sun.InGrade4,studentsstudiedfoodchainsandfoodwebsthatbeginwithplants
Again,allorganismsdependontheSun,ultimately.
AsstudentsstudythecompositionoftheSuninthissectiontheywilllearnthatenergy
iscreatedbythepressureandextremeheatfusinghydrogenatomstogether.Hydrogen
atomshaveoneprotonintheirnucleus.Whentheyarepushedtogetherwithsuch
pressure,thetwoprotonsfuse.Inthiswaytheycreateanucleuswithtwoprotons.
Whentwoprotonsareinthenucleus,aheliumatomisformed.
Wecallthis“nuclearfusion”(asopposedtonuclearfissionwherethenucleusissplit
apart).Bothoftheseprocessescreatetremendousenergy.Theenergyfromthenuclear
fusionintheSuniswhatkeepsEarthgoing.Studentswilllearnthespecificslaterin
theirstudyofchemistryandphysics,fornow,theyneedtoknowthattheSuncreates
energyandiscomposedofheliumandhydrogen.
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California Content Standards
5.a.
Students know the Sun, an average star, is the central and largest body in the solar system and is composed
primarily of hydrogen and helium.
Learning Strategies and Scaffolding
ThroughoutthisStandardSetstudentsmustcometogripswithsomeabstract
conceptsincludinggreatdistancesandgreatsizes.Theyareencouragedtoread
andvisittheInternetwhererelationalsizemodelscanbeportrayedinexciting
ways.
TheNASA(NationalAeronauticsandSpaceAdministration)websitepresentsthis
materialthroughmanyphotossentbacktoEarthfrommannedandunmannedspace
missionswhichhavebeencollectingdatafordecades.
Forthosestudentsasintriguedwithlookingbackintimeaslookingforward,thereare
manygreatastronomersandphysicistswhohaveworkedovercenturiestounderstand
thesolarsystem.InthetextstudentsareintroducedtoCopernicus,thePolish
astronomerfromthe1500’swhoiscreditedwithprovingthattheSunisthecenterof
ouruniverse.
Aswithmostscience,histheoriesandfindingswerefurtherinvestigated.Studentscan
researchCopernicusandhissuccessors,GalileoandKepler,tonamejusttwo,whotook
hisinformationandexploreditfurther.Subsequentfindingshelpedclarifythethinking
oftheworldatthetimeandeversince.
Studentsshouldalsobeencouragedtolooktootherpartsoftheworldforother
civilizations’ideasanddiscoveriesabouttheSunandtheuniverse.AztecandMaya
civilizations,forexample,centeredmuchoftheirbeliefsontheroleoftheSun.They
builtpyramidstostudythemovementoftheSun.Studentsmaywishtostudythese
ancientstructures,likeStonehengeinEnglandandthetempleatKarnakinancient
Egypt,builttotracetheSun’smovement.Somestudentsmightwishtomakea
presentationtotheclassoftheirfindings,othersmightdrawpicturesordiagramsofthe
temples,andothersmaytrytheirhandsatbuildingmodelsofthestructures.
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Section 5 — Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
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Section 5 — Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
Teacher Edition
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419
California Content Standards — Grade 5
Standard Set 5. Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
5.
The solar system consists of planets and other bodies that orbit the Sun in predictable paths.
5.a.
Students know the Sun, an average star, is the central and largest body in the solar system and is composed
primarily of hydrogen and helium.
The Story
Ancientpeoplewereexcellentscientists.Theyobservedeverythingaround
themandaskedquestions.Theyoftencameupwithanswers,basedontheir
observations.Theseancientastronomers(scientistswhostudythesolar
system)observedtheSunmovingacrosstheskyalldaylong.TheywatchedtheMoon
movingacrosstheskyatnight,and,sometimeseveninthedaytime.Theirconclusion:
Earthisthecenteroftheuniverse.
Earthatthecenterofeverythingmakessense,basedonwhatthoseancientpeoplesaw.
Moreobservationsthroughtime,andfurtherquestionsthatwereinvestigated(and
continuetobeinvestigated)showedthatEarthisnotthecenteroftheuniverseafterall.
Inthe1500’saPolishscientistnamed,Copernicus,usedmathematicsandhis
observationsofthesky(withoutatelescope,whichwasnotinventedforanother100
years)toreachastartlingconclusion.HistheorywasthattheSunwasactuallythe
centerofoursolarsystem.
Astronomershavecontinuedtoexplorespace.Theyhavediscoveredthatmanyplanets
besidesEarthorbitourSun.Theyhavefoundasteroidbelts,comets,andevenother
solarsystemswiththeirownSuns!
Focus Question
Thinkaboutourownsolarsystem.WhereistheSunlocated?
Thecenter.
Answer
Teacher Edition
Section 5 — Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
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420
California Content Standards
5.a.
Students know the Sun, an average star, is the central and largest body in the solar system and is composed
primarily of hydrogen and helium.
Key Words:
Star—
Sun—
Hydrogen—
Helium—
Solar—
alargebodyinspacethatproduces
itsownenergy
thenamewegivethestarthatisatthe
centerofoursolarsystem
alightweightgasthatreactseasilywithotherelements
alightweightgasthatdoesnotreacteasilywith
otherelements
somethingrelatedtotheSun,ex.solarsystem
The Sun
TheSunisthelargestbodyinour
solarsystem.Althoughitisan
averagesizestar,itseemshugeto
us.
Earth,asweknowit,wouldnot
existwithouttheSun.Withoutthe
Sun’slightenergy,plantscould
notmaketheirownfood.
Withoutplants,youknowwhat
wouldhappentotheanimals!
WithoutthewarmthoftheSun,even
thoughitisapproximately150,000,000
kilometers(93millionmiles)awayfrom
Earth,allthewaterherewouldfreeze.Itwouldget
socoldthatnolifecouldexist.
Section 5 — Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
“Howdoesthe
Sunmakeall
thisheatand
lightenergy?”
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California Content Standards
5.a.
Students know the Sun, an average star, is the central and largest body in the solar system and is composed
primarily of hydrogen and helium.
Likeallstars,theSunismadeupofgases.OurSunismadeupmainlyofhydrogenand
helium.BecausethereissomuchpressureandsuchextremeheatintheSun,hydrogen
atomsjointogetherinaprocesscalled“fusion”.Twohydrogenatoms“fusing”together
formaheliumatom.Theprocesscreatesatremendousamountofenergy.OnEarthwe
canseethatenergyintheformoflightandfeelitintheformofheat.
Corona
Flare
Core
Sunspot
AstronomerswanttolearnmoreabouttheSun.Theyknowthatthebrightringaround
theoutsideispartoftheSun’satmosphere.Itiscalledthe“corona”.Theyalsoknowthat
sometimesthereisanextrahigh-energyexplosionofhydrogencalleda“flare”.They
knowthatsometimestherearestormsonthesurfaceoftheSun.Thesestormsarecalled
“sunspots”.Byobservingthesunspotsscientistshavediscoveredthat
“Scientistsdo
knowthatthe
theSunrotatesjustlikeEarthdoes.Theyknowthatsunspotsoccur
moretheyfind
accordingtoacycleandhavesomethingtodowithmagneticfields;
out,themore
questionsthere
buttheydon’tknowwhyandtheydon’tknowwhat.
are.”
Focus Question
AlotofenergyiscontinuouslycreatedbytheSun.
Howisthisenergycreated?
Hydrogengasiscombiningtoformheliumatoms.Alotofenergyisreleasedduringthisreaction.
Answer
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California Content Standards
5.a.
Students know the Sun, an average star, is the central and largest body in the solar system and is composed
primarily of hydrogen and helium.
Test Practice Questions
1.
Whichbodyisatthecenterofoursolarsystem?
A. Earth
B.
Sun
C. starcluster
D. orbitals
2.
WhateffectwouldbeseenonEarthiftherewerenoSun?
A. photosynthesiswouldstop
B.
therateofphotosynthesiswouldincrease
C. oceanswouldfloodcoastalplains
D. riverswouldflowmoreslowly
Answer: __A__
3.
TheSunismainlymadeupof
A. heliumandnitrogen
B.
fireandoxygen
C. steamandhydrogen
D. hydrogenandhelium
Answer: __D__
4.
Earthandotherplanetsorbit
A. aroundtheSun
B.
insidetheSun
C. aroundeachother
D. differentlyeverysolaryear
Answer: __A__
Section 5 — Earth Sciences (The Solar System)
Answer: __B__
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California Content Standards
5.a.
Students know the Sun, an average star, is the central and largest body in the solar system and is composed
primarily of hydrogen and helium.
Science and Literacy Strategies
Literacy Strategy: Comprehension Check: Question.
Standard 5.a. — The Sun and Earth
Our solar system, as we understand it today, consists of the Sun (which we call our
star), nine planets and their moons, and other objects that roam outer space. The Sun
radiates its energy in all directions through space. This energy, called radiant or heat
energy, provides all the heat and light for the planets in our solar system.
The Sun is considered a star because it is made of gases, called hydrogen and helium,
just like other bodies in space that make their own energy. Hydrogen is a lightweight
gas that reacts with other elements. Helium is a lightweight gas that does not react
easily with other elements. The core, or the inside of the Sun is extremely hot. The
reason for this is the hydrogen atoms combine to form helium atoms and release a
tremendous amount of energy. The Sun’s energy is stronger than any type of energy on
Earth.
Comprehension Check: Question. Why do we call the Sun our “star”?
The Sun and Earth have a special relationship. The Earth revolves around the Sun; it
receives heat and light necessary for life to exist. Do you remember when we learned
about living organisms and the things they need to live and grow? Light was one
of those important ingredients, and light from the Sun provides plant life with this
essential ingredient.
AH HA! Making a Connection in Learning: When you make a connection like this one,
stop and write it down.
What is the connection between the Sun and living organisms on Earth?
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Section 5 — Earth Sciences (The Solar System)